UNTOC20 - true crime stories

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Is Kim Dotcom, the “movie industry killer”, guilty of organized crime?

Ten years ago, you might have been looking for a solution to send your favorite songs - heavy mp3 files - with your friends. Too heavy to send by email, you felt frustrated. You didn’t want to wait to meet each of your friends in person to handle over a bunch of USB sticks. You remember yourself thinking that there must be an easiest way. Fortunately, a quick search brought you straight to what seemed to be a simple solution: Megaupload.   Read more

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AlphaBay: How seven countries worked together to take down the biggest online black market for drugs

Have you ever heard about the “dark web”? What about AlphaBay? AlphaBay was launched by a Canadian citizen, Alexander Cazes, in December 2014, and became one of the largest “dark web” marketplaces designed to enable users to buy and sell illegal goods, including controlled substances, stolen and fraudulent identification documents and access devices, counterfeit goods, malware and other computer hacking tools, firearms, and toxic chemicals.   Read more

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Money laundering, organized crime and falsified medical products: why you should be cautious when buying medication online

Founded in 2001 by Kristjan Thorkelson, “Canada Drugs” was well known for selling low-cost medications. And if you have heard about CanadaDrugs.com, you may be wondering what happened to the online drugstore.
In 2010, it came to the attention of the US Food and Drug Administration that Canada Drugs was shipping prescription drugs ... Read more

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The Akasha brothers' international drug trafficking network

Pablo Escobar and Felix Angel Gallardo with “Narcos”, Frank Lucas with “American Gangster”, Joaquin Guzman with “El Chapo”—these are just a few examples of the many TV series and movies that have been based on real life famous drug traffickers, all available on a major streaming platform. Another story that could be the base for a captivating TV show would be the Akasha brothers’ story.   Read more

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Arms trafficker hides his arsenal across the police headquarters – but he still got caught

Have you ever been to San Juan City, in metropolitan Manilla, Philippines? The city is known for its heritage homes and wide range of upscale boutiques. However, it is also where Mr. Unding Kenneth Isa got arrested in 2016 for high-powered firearms possession.
Who is Unding Kenneth Isa?
Let’s start at the beginning ... Read more

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Transnational organized crime facilitated through technology: the Phantom Secure case

Vincent Ramos was a cyber genius and the CEO of Vancouver-based company, Canada. Visionary, he could have had a brilliant career in the tech industry. Instead, he decided to work for criminals, helping them to “go dark” and avoid law enforcement.
Mr Ramos ran a company called Phantom Secure that was selling custom, modified mobile phones and operated an encrypted network ... Read more

 

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